Application of the Limit Cycle Model to Star Formation Histories in Spiral Galaxies: Variation among Morphological Types

We propose a limit-cycle scenario of star formation history for any morphological type of spiral galaxies. It is known observationally that the early-type spiral sample has a wider range of the present star formation rate (SFR) than the late-type sample. This tendency is understood in the framework of the limit-cycle model of the interstellar medium (ISM), in which the SFR cyclically changes in accordance with the temporal variation of the mass fraction of the three ISM components. When the limit-cycle model of the ISM is applied, the amplitude of variation of the SFR is expected to change with the supernova (SN) rate. Observational evidence indicates that the early-type spiral galaxies show smaller rates of present SN than late-type ones. Combining this evidence with the limit-cycle model of the ISM, we predict that the early-type spiral galaxies show larger amplitudes in their SFR variation than the late-types. Indeed, this prediction is consistent with the observed wider range of the SFR in the early-type sample than in the late-type sample. Thus, in the framework of the limit-cycle model of the ISM, we are able to interpret the difference in the amplitude of SFR variation among the morphological classes of spiral galaxies.Comment: 12 pages LaTeX, to appear in A

Evaluation of scanning earth sensor mechanism on engineering test satellite 4

The results of the analysis and the evaluation of flight data obtained from the horizon sensor test project are described. The rotary mechanism of the scanning earth sensor composed of direct drive motor and bearings using solid lubricant is operated satisfactorily. The transmitted flight data from Engineering Test Satellite IV was evaluated in comparison with the design value

A perception and manipulation system for collecting rock samples

An important part of a planetary exploration mission is to collect and analyze surface samples. As part of the Carnegie Mellon University Ambler Project, researchers are investigating techniques for collecting samples using a robot arm and a range sensor. The aim of this work is to make the sample collection operation fully autonomous. Described here are the components of the experimental system, including a perception module that extracts objects of interest from range images and produces models of their shapes, and a manipulation module that enables the system to pick up the objects identified by the perception module. The system was tested on a small testbed using natural terrain

On the Decelerating Shock Instability of Plane-Parallel Slab with Finite Thickness

Dynamical stability of the shock compressed layer with finite thickness is investigated. It is characterized by self-gravity, structure, and shock condition at the surfaces of the compressed layer. At one side of the shocked layer, its surface condition is determined via the ram pressure, while at the other side the thermal pressure supports its structure. When the ram pressure dominates the thermal pressure, we expect deceleration of the shocked layer. Especially, in this paper, we examine how the stratification of the decelerating layer has an effect on its dynamical stability. Performing the linear perturbation analysis, a {\it more general} dispersion relation than the previous one obtained by one of the authors is derived. It gives us an interesting information about the stability of the decelerating layer. Importantly, the DSI (Decelerating Shock Instability) and the gravitational instability are always incompatible. We also consider the evolution effect of the shocked layer. In the early stages of its evolution, only DSI occurs. On the contrary, in the late stages, it is possible for the shocked layer to be unstable for the DSI (in smaller scale) and the gravitational instability (in larger scale). Furthermore, we find there is a stable range of wavenumbers against both the DSI and the gravitational instability between respective unstable wavenumber ranges. These stable modes suggest the ineffectiveness of DSI for the fragmentation of the decelerating slab.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figures. The Astrophysical Journal Vol.532 in pres

Formation of Sub-galactic Clouds under UV Background Radiation

The effects of the UV background radiation on the formation of sub-galactic clouds are studied by means of one-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations. The radiative transfer of the ionizing photons due to the absorption by HI, HeI and HeII, neglecting the emission, is explicitly taken into account. We find that the complete suppression of collapse occurs for the clouds with circular velocities typically in the range V_c \sim 15-40 km/s and the 50% reduction in the cooled gas mass with V_c \sim 20-55 km/s. These values depend most sensitively on the collapse epoch of the cloud, the shape of the UV spectrum, and the evolution of the UV intensity. Compared to the optically thin case, previously investigated by Thoul & Weinberg (1996), the absorption of the external UV photon by the intervening medium systematically lowers the above threshold values by \Delta V_c \sim 5 km/s. Whether the gas can contract or keeps expanding is roughly determined by the balance between the gravitational force and the thermal pressure gradient when it is maximally exposed to the external UV flux. Based on our simulation results, we discuss a number of implications on galaxy formation, cosmic star formation history, and the observations of quasar absorption lines. In Appendix, we derive analytical formulae for the photoionization coefficients and heating rates, which incorporate the frequency/direction-dependent transfer of external photons.Comment: 38 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Chemical Evolution of the Galaxy Based on the Oscillatory Star Formation History

We model the star formation history (SFH) and the chemical evolution of the Galactic disk by combining an infall model and a limit-cycle model of the interstellar medium (ISM). Recent observations have shown that the SFH of the Galactic disk violently variates or oscillates. We model the oscillatory SFH based on the limit-cycle behavior of the fractional masses of three components of the ISM. The observed period of the oscillation ($\sim 1$ Gyr) is reproduced within the natural parameter range. This means that we can interpret the oscillatory SFH as the limit-cycle behavior of the ISM. We then test the chemical evolution of stars and gas in the framework of the limit-cycle model, since the oscillatory behavior of the SFH may cause an oscillatory evolution of the metallicity. We find however that the oscillatory behavior of metallicity is not prominent because the metallicity reflects the past integrated SFH. This indicates that the metallicity cannot be used to distinguish an oscillatory SFH from one without oscillations.Comment: 21 pages LaTeX, to appear in Ap